Stakeholder #3

Stakeholder #3: Bill Gates.

3019834 billgates.jpg, 10/2013, fastcompany.net; Public Domain.

1. Can you describe this stakeholder in 200-250 words? If they're an individual, vividly describe how they look, what they wear, how they move. Tell us how they sound, how they talk, what their mannerisms are. Conjure them in our mind's eye, by appealing to at least THREE of our FIVE senses. If the stakeholder is an insitution or group, then describe the institution and how it appears in the world. How do people encounter this group or institution, digitally or physically? Describe their website or headquarters or something else that physically represents the group to the world at large.

Bill Gates is the familiar face that everybody meets when they are a mere child when they press the power button on their PC for the first time. When that Windows Logo pops up in a classroom, you can’t help but think about the man that helped get it here. Bill Gates is extremely involved in charities, notably his own, the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation, which has donated billions of dollars of charity to help get computers in classrooms for underprivileged students. Bill Gates is quite frankly an oddball. Often times his wife has to introduce him when he first greets people because he is introverted. He finds it extremely hard to sit still, presumably because his brain is firing at a million miles an hour. If I were to compare him to something familiar, I would compare him to a wet dog – unable to hold still, constantly shaking, yet at the same time bursting with freedom and emotion. It’s a weird analogy, I know, but it gets the point across. Bill’s flaws are also what links his creative capacities to what he can accomplish. The fact that he is not hardwired like you or me explains why he is unable to take “no” for an answer and constantly pushes the boundaries of technology.

2. Can you identify THREE specific claims being made by this stakeholder? The claims should be public and about the specific story you're investigating. Provide direct quotes for three different claims or ideas made in public by this stakeholder. Each quote sould be clearly hyperlinked to the original source.


Claim 1: "Humans should be worried about the threat posed by artificial Intelligence." (LINK)

Claim 2: "I am in the camp that is concerned about super intelligence. First the machines will do a lot of jobs for us and not be super intelligent. That should be positive if we manage it well." (LINK)

Claim 3: "I agree with Elon Musk and some others on this and don't understand why some people are not concerned." (LINK)

3. Can you explain how valid these claims are? Objectively, how much weight do these claims carry? How credible are they? Be specific. Think about how poorly or successfully the stakeholder cites FACTS, plays on our EMOTIONS, or presents themself as a CREDIBLE actor in the debate.

These claims are hard to evaluate in terms of precision because they regard speculation. However, Gates does indicate that he does side with Elon Musk, and he mentions "some people" are not concerned about the existential threat posed by autonomous, armed robots patrolling the streets... That some person being Mark Zuckerberg.

4. Can you explain how these claims are similar and/or different to the other stakeholders? Be clear and precise - does this stakeholder have anything in common with others involved in the debate? Who do they have the least in common with? Why?

The stakeholders (Zuckerberg, Elon/Gates) are at a general consensus that AI is extremely powerful, and if it keeps developing at the rate at which it currently is, will be more powerful than we can dream of. Now, there is a huge divide as to if we should allow the AI to reach its full capacity. Gates and Musk are attempting to halt progress, well, at least for the civilians, while possibly keeping it for their own selfish usage.